Padding material for jewelry containers



; as the boil will remove the naturally present in the fibre. For my present Patented Apr. 5, 1938 PADDIN-G MATERIAL FOR JEWELRY CON- TAINERS Raymond E. Reed, Walpole, Mass, assignor to The Kendall Company, Boston, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts No Drawing. Application May 1, 1935, Serial No. 19,265

10 Claims.

The present invention relates to a jewelers cotton or padding material for jewelry containers. This novel material is particularly adapted for use in the packaging of inexpensive jewelry, wherein it is adapted to support and display the jewelry within the box or container.

My material presents decided advantages over the usual material which has been used heretofore for this purpose, and moreover, a web of my material presents a beautiful lustre which may be varied as hereinafter mentioned and thus provides an advantageous background for the display of the jewelry. The web possesses'a high loft with little or no tendency to pack down or mat, even when rolled into the rolls in which it may conveniently be supplied to the trade. The

generally non-absorbent property of my material is also of great advantage. Inexpensive jewelry is likely to tarnishjf it remains in contact .with moisture as would be the case if it were packaged with an absorbent material. My material furtherpossesses considerable web strength, the web while light and fluffy having sufiicient cohesive strength to permitrolling, unrolling and handling without loss of identity and integrity of the web and without losing its form or dimensions. Jewelry has a tendency to pick up short or broken fibres on the surface of the padding but the smooth, uniform fibres presented by the surface of my padding material prevent this. My material also resists crimping", or the tendency for the fibres to adhere together at the edge of the piece when cut into suitable sizes for the containers. Crimping is a serious disadvantage in a padding material for jewelry containers since it impairs the fiuifiness or loft of the cut product.

I obtain this advantageous product by a novel combination of generally non-absorbent carded. cotton fibres which may preferably, although not necessarily, contain a fatty body such as wax or oil, and artificial cellulosic fibres such, for example, as are produced by the viscose or cuprammonium processes.

The chemical treatment of cotton fibre known Waxes and oils purpose I preferably control the boil so that while the waxes and oils are removed from the surface of the fibre, wax and oil remain within the individual fibres wherethey may enhance the resiliency, non-absorbency, strength and noncrimping properties of the final product.

As an example of one way of preparing my product in the form of a web, the following may be given: The cotton as it comes from the boil,

preferably but not necessarily, containing natural wax and oil within the fibre, is bleached and carded. A number of cards may be used, most of them turning out cotton, but one or more carding artificial cellulosio fibres, such, for 5 example, as rayon. The layers from the cards are superposed to form a web. In this procedure, a layer of these dry-assembled rayon fibres mayappear only on one surface of the finished product, on both surfaces, or also within theweb.

When a layer or layers of rayon fibre are positioned within the web, the web may, if desired, be subsequently separated at the laminations so formed. In this industry it is often desired to divide a cotton web or bat into two or more equal 15 layers. Whereas it is extremely diificult to divide the ordinary cotton web equally, in this em-' bodiment of my novel product the rayon layer or layers serve as lines of demarcation which make possible ready separation of the web into uniform 20 layers.

Instead of forming a laminated structure I 'may mix the carded cotton and artificial fibres throughout the web.-

My finished web secures in a unitary structure dual characteristics, the curled and kinky nature of the cotton fibre imparting loft and non-absorbent and non-crimping properties to the web, while the smooth, uniform, lustrous rayon fibres, which alone would not be suitable for jewelers cotton due to lack of strength and resiliency and tendency to crimp when out, not only enhance the appearance of the web but minimize the undesirable picking up of fibres by the jewelry and permit separation of the rolled web without 515- nificant adherence of one layer to .another. I Rayon fibres having fibre lengths well in excess of any lengths obtainable with cotton fibres may well be used. The lustre of the web may be varied over a wide range by varying the diameter of the 40 artificial fibre and by the use of delustering treatments to which such fibre is susceptible.

A body of cotton fibre may be dyed and coated with 'a layer of dyed or undyed artificial cellu-' losicfibre of a thickness permitting the color of the dyed cotton to be visible through the coating, when the material will present a brilliance and specular reflection previously unknown in dyed material. I

' Not only regenerated cellulose fibre such as is produced by the viscose or cuprammoniumproc esses, but also cellulose esters and ethers may be used in combination with cotton fibres of. the type specified. While such cellulosic fibres are sents at its surface a layer of artificial fibres.-

These fibres do not intermesh and tangle together under pressure as do cotton fibres.

A suitable web may also be produced by the use of China cotton, which presents a short, curly, very wiry fibre. Prior to my invention this material, which is ideal from the standpoint of loft and resiliency, could not be used for jewelers cotton because of its appearance when carded. When combined with artificial cellulosic or silk fibres in accordance with my invention, however, China cotton (as also garnetted materials which are very economical to produce) makes a highly satisfactory'material for this purpose.

I claim: v

1. As a new article of manufacture, a padding material for jewelry containers, said material comprising a body of tangled cotton fibre, individual fibres of which are relatively non-absorbent and non-crimping, and a superimposed layer of relatively absorbent, lustrous, smooth, uniform, unwoven artificial fibres, said artificial fibres being dry-assembled, unbonded, and discontinuous longitudinally of said material toform with said cotton fibres a laminated web having a loft and fiuffiness comparable to cardedcotton, said web capable of rolling and unrolling without substan-' tial adherence of one convolution to another.

. 2. As anew article of manufacture, .a padding material for jewelry containers, said material being in web form and the web being in the form of a roll, the web comprising tangled cotton fibres which are relatively non-absorbent and noncrimping, and lustrous, smooth, unwoven arti-. ficial cellulosic fibres, said artificial fibres being unbonded and forming with said cotton fibres an unfelted, coherent web having a loft and fiumness comparable to carded cotton, successive layers of the roll being in direct contact with each other yet capable of unrolling without substantial adherence of one convolution to another and with longitudinally of the web, the web as a whole possessing strength, resilience and loft comparable to carded cotton.

4. As an article of manufacture, a web comprising resilient, relatively non-absorbent, noncrimping, tangled, cotton fibres and unwoven, artificial cellulosic fibres, the cotton fibres and artificial fibres intermixed to form an unfelted but coherent web-having a fiufiiness and loft comparable to carded cotton.

5. As a new article of manufacture, jewelers cotton in web form, said web comprising tangled cotton fibres which are resilient and relatively non-absorbent,- the tangled cotton fibres being associated in the web with a plurality of layers of lustrous smooth, unwoven, artificial fibres, said artificial fibres being dry-assembled, unbonded and discontinuous longitudinally of said web.

6. As a new article of manufacture, a layer of colored, tangled,- carded cotton fibre, and super posed thereon a layer of lustrous, smooth, unwoven artificial-cellulosic fibres, said artificial fibres being dry-assembled, unbonded, and discontinuous longitudinally of said layer to form with the cotton fibre layer a laminated web havj ing a loft and fiufiinesscomparable to carded cotton, the color of the tangled cotton web being visible through the artificial fibre layer.

7. As a new article of manufacture, a padding material for jewelry containers, said material comprising a body of tangled cotton fibre, indi vidual fibres of which are relatively non-absorbent and non-crimping and contain natural wax and oil, and a superimposed layer of relatively absorbent, lustrous, smooth, uniform, un-

ficial cellulosic fibres, said artificial fibres beingdry-assembled, unbonded and discontinuous longitudinally of the web, the web as a whole possessing strength, resilience and loft comparable to carded cotton.

9. As an article of manufacture, a web comprising intermixed resilient, relatively non-absorbent, hon-crimping, tangled, cotton fibres containing wax and oil, and unwoven, artificial cellulosic fibres, the cotton fibres and artificial fibres intermixed to form an unfelted but coherent web having a fiufi'lness and loft comparable to carded cotton.

10. As a new article of manufacture, a padding material for jewelry containers, said material comprising a body of tangled cotton fibre, individual fibres of which are relatively non-absorb- 'ent and non-crimping, having associated therewith lustrous, unwoven, dry-assembled silk fibres,

said silk fibres discontinuous longitudinally of said material and forming with the cotton fibres a unitary strip having a loft and fiufiiness comparable to carded cotton and capable of being rolled and unrolled without substantial adherence of one convolution to another.

RAYMOND E. REED. 

